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Charlie Crist opens 21-point lead over Ken Welch in final weeks of mayoral campaign
Florida Politics
Welch
WelchUpdated Oct 16, 2026, 2:28 PM ET
Charlie Crist, who governed Florida from 2007 to 2011 and later represented St. Petersburg in the US House, faces incumbent Ken Welch in the city's 2026 mayoral runoff.
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Recent media coverage for Charlie Crist.
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Weedon Island, school closures, mayoral debate, City Center parking, Clearwater Jazz Holiday, Children’s Network of Hillsborough
stpetecatalyst.comWelch
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Crist, Welch differ on issues during only televised debate
The only one-on-one debate between incumbent Mayor Ken Welch and challenger Charlie Crist aired on Spectrum Bay News 9.
WUSFWelch -
Welch, Crist spar and compare opinions in mayoral debate
Charlie Crist and incumbent Ken Welch spar over St. Pete’s future in a Spectrum News 9–moderated mayoral debate. Crist touts endorsements from all four living former St.
stpetecatalyst.comWelch -
Crist, Welch address Pride murals, anti-DEI law in St. Petersburg mayoral debate
In the St. Petersburg mayoral debate, challenger Charlie Crist pressed for a more progressive approach on LGBTQ+ rights and free speech, highlighting his endorsements from former living mayors and local City Council…
watermarkoutnews.comWelch -
Welch, Crist spar over St. Pete’s future in final debate
Context: Final, only televised debate before the November election between Mayor Ken Welch and former Gov. Charlie Crist. No pre-scripted questions or reading points.
tampabayreporter.comWelch
More coverage 1
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St. Petersburg mayoral debate: 5 key takeaways on taxes, bonds, and Pride murals
Tax and spending: Crist called for cutting the city’s property tax rate by 0.4 mills, which he says would save about $15 million annually; Welch defended current budgeting and challenged Crist to show how savings would…
No story this week names this candidate.
- Born
- July 24, 1956
- Birthplace
- Altoona, Pennsylvania
- Education
- St. Petersburg High School (1974)
Wake Forest University (attended)
Florida State University (undergraduate degree)
Samford University, Cumberland School of Law (JD, 1981)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Charles Joseph Crist Jr. was born on July 24, 1956, in Altoona, Pennsylvania, the second of four children of Nancy (née Lee) and Charles Joseph Crist, a physician who later chaired the Pinellas County school board.
He moved as a child to St. Petersburg, Florida, and graduated in 1974 from St. Petersburg High School.
He spent two years as a walk-on quarterback at Wake Forest University, then transferred to Florida State University, where he completed his undergraduate degree, before earning a Juris Doctor from Samford University's Cumberland School of Law in 1981.
Career
A Republican at the start of his political career, Crist held a Florida Senate seat from 1993 to 1999, giving it up for an unsuccessful 1998 challenge to Senator Bob Graham. He then held two statewide posts, education commissioner (2001 to 2003) and attorney general (2003 to 2007).
In 2006 he defeated Democrat Jim Davis to become the 44th governor of Florida, serving from 2007 to 2011. While governor he ran for the US Senate in 2010, left the Republican Party that April to run as an independent, and finished second to Marco Rubio with 30% of the vote.
He joined the Democratic Party on December 7, 2012, and lost the 2014 governor's race to Republican Rick Scott by 1 percentage point.
In 2016 he won Florida's St. Petersburg-based 13th congressional district, defeating Republican incumbent David Jolly 52% to 48%, and he served in the House until resigning in August 2022 to run for governor, an election he lost to Republican Governor Ron DeSantis.
On June 7, 2023, the Biden administration nominated him as US ambassador to the International Civil Aviation Organization; the nomination expired on January 3, 2025.
2026 race
Crist is running for mayor of St. Petersburg, Florida, in an officially nonpartisan election against the incumbent, Ken Welch, who won the office in 2021; both men are registered Democrats. Crist received the most votes in the August 18, 2026, first round, and because no candidate won a majority, he and Welch advanced to a runoff on November 3, 2026.